


Beached

by newsiesgirllaces



Category: Batman (Comics)
Genre: M/M, mermaid au
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-02-03
Updated: 2014-02-10
Packaged: 2018-01-11 01:03:40
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,080
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1166754
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/newsiesgirllaces/pseuds/newsiesgirllaces
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Jason just wants to get away from his family and live a new life at the shore. It's a new life alright, especially when Jason runs into a merman named Tim.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Warning: Strong language at times because of Jason.  
> Please enjoy!

Chpt.1  
Jason wasn’t exactly upset that he had burned most of the bridges he had with his family. He didn’t need Damian. He didn’t need Dick. Hell, he didn’t even need Bruce.  
He stabbed his fork through the runny egg that he made for himself.  
Maybe he needed Alfred, but that would be the only bridge burned that he regretted.  
“Who needs ‘em.” He thought out loud with a long sigh. Ever since he moved into the old beach house, he had been talking out loud. He was used to the noise of a busy and polluted city, not the calming silence of waves and the breeze running through sea grass.  
Yes, for Jason, this was definitely a new beginning and a change of scene.  
After his breakfast, Jason threw on a tank top and shorts, letting his feet go bare. He wanted to see if any shells washed up on the shore after the storm the night before since he may or may not be collecting them.  
As Jason padded out onto the shore, he noticed the mass of seaweed and debris from the storm. It had been violent, the thunder keeping him up for most of the night.  
Jason frowned when most shells he found were shattered, but he kept on walking along the shore, in hopes of finding some still intact.  
He then noticed a lump of something further up surrounded by seagulls.  
“A beached dolphin?” Jason questioned to himself as he sprinted over to the figure, shooing the seagulls away.  
His breath stopped short as he looked down at what appeared to be a… _mermaid._ Well, no. More like mer _man._  
He was pale with skin almost ghostly white and straight coal black hair that framed his face in wisps and stopped at the nape of his neck. His lower half was a turquoise colored tail.  
The merman’s skin and tail were littered in cuts from what seemed to be sharp shells and maybe rocks.  
Reaching a shaky hand out, Jason gently touched the side of the creature’s neck and felt a pulse.  
“You’re alive.” Jason whispered, then looked around to see if anyone was nearby. However, he was alone. It was just him, the merman, and the seagulls.  
“Well… I can’t let you stay here to be seagull bait.” Jason sighed, then scooped the merman into his arms, the creature’s young face leaning against Jason’s bicep.  
“Heavy little thing, aren’t you?” Jason grunted as he lumbered back to his home with merman in tow.  
He kicked the door open and placed the merman onto the couch and started to clean out and patch up the creature’s cuts.  
“Did you get caught up in the storm? Probably.” Jason let out a sigh as he continued patching the creature up. “Idiot, you’re a merman. Shouldn’t you have a way to tell when the waters are gonna be rough or something?”  
Of course the creature was silent, still unconscious.  
“I wonder what your name is… and do you even speak or understand English?” Jason hummed for a moment. “Maybe you have names with stuff to do with the ocean. Like clam or starfish or seaweed or something.” Jason chuckled at that. “Yeah, you could be called seaweed.”  
After Jason was done patching up the cuts, he brushed some of the hair out of the merman’s face and stared at it.  
“Gotta say, you sure got a cute face.” Jason smirked.  
“Why thank you.” Jason practically flew backwards at the small voice that abruptly came out of the merman’s lips.  
“You’re awake?!” Jason questioned, his voice going into a higher register, still in some shock.  
“Mhmm.” The merman nodded, then looked down at the bandages on his body. “Thank you for being so kind as to clean my wounds.” He spoke cordially.  
“Yeah… no problem.” Jason shrugged a bit. The merman went to set up, but immediately grunted and held his right arm in pain. Jason had noticed earlier when he was bandaging the creature that the arm was in an awkward position and it might be broken. The merman’s pain confirmed his thought.  
“Your arm is probably broken.” Jason stated, and the merman rolled his eyes.  
“Thank you for the obvious information.” He snarked. Jason raised an eyebrow as he looked down at the creature. Did a merman just _sass_ him?  
“ _Excuse_ me?” Jason questioned. He had just moved out of a house full of people who gave him nothing but shit and here this mermaid was, sassing him like he had a right to speak to him like a peasant.  
“You heard me. The information is obvious. I mean, look at my arm. It is bent in such a way that it is obviously broken. Are you stupid?” the merman questioned.  
“I’m sorry, but that doesn’t sound much like gratitude towards the guy who just saved your scaly ass. I could just throw you back into the ocean. Or maybe sell you to some scientists. I’m sure they’d be _very_ interested in you.” Jason stated, his voice hinting at some anger and the creature immediately seemed to sink into the couch in fear, but his face was trying to stay unfazed by Jason’s comment.  
“I apologize.” The merman mumbled. “Please don’t give me to scientists.” The merman’s sass was gone in a flash and was replaced with very real fear.  
Jason suddenly felt guilty for threatening him.  
“I won’t… if you don’t give me that attitude.” Jason stated. “Anyway, what’s your name?”  
“Timothy, but just Tim is fine.” the merman responded, and Jason chuckled.  
“Aw, Timmy. It fits you.” Jason smirked, and the mermaid right out _pouted._  
“Timmy was not an option of the names I gave you.” The merman stated, and Jason ruffled the hair on Tim’s head.  
“And where do you come off talking all high and mighty and regal?” Jason questioned, and Tim’s blue eyes shifted to the ground.  
“Nowhere.” He mumbled. Jason shrugged, then went to examining Tim’s arm.  
“I guess I should be more focused on getting your arm fixed. Any ideas how I can smuggle you into a hospital without any doctors asking why you have a tail?” Jason questioned.  
“Well…” Tim was cut off by a knocking at the door.  
“I’ll get it. Just… stay here.” Jason sighed as he stood and made his way to the door. He opened it to see Dick, standing there all warm and friendly.  
“The fuck are you doing here?” Jason grunted, glaring at his older brother.  
“C’mon Jay, I’m just here to visit. It’s been about a month and nobody’s heard anything from you.” Dick stated. “Can I come in?” Dick moved like he was going to brush past Jason into the house, but Jason quickly used his broad shoulders to block him from slipping in.  
“No. I’m in the middle of something so if you could just leave, that’d be great.” Jason stated harshly. Dick didn’t flinch. He would have if he didn’t know Jason as well as he did.  
“C’mon Jay, it’s just me. I’m not going to try to force you to come back or anything, I just want to talk.”  
“Well I told you that I was _busy._ Another time.” Jason growled.  
“Jay, stop being so standoffish. Just talk to me! What could you be so busy with that you can’t talk to-” Dick’s words died on his lips as he looked behind Jason. His eyes were wide and when Jason turned around, he saw why.  
Tim was standing there with _legs._ And not just legs, but with some other extremities.  
Jason had no clue how he was supposed to explain to his brother why he had a naked person in his home.  
“Oh, so when you said you were busy…” Dick’s face was red and he quickly averted his eyes from the nude boy. “I see. Sorry for bothering. I’ll drop by later to talk. Sorry for interrupting.” With that, Dick was hurrying back to his car.  
If Jason knew that simply having a naked person with him would make Dick shut up and leave, he would have invited more naked boys over when he was still living in the city.  
“He left rather fast.” Tim stated. Jason sighed and nodded as he closed the door.  
“Yes he did. It might have to do with, y’know, you being stark naked.” Jason stated and Tim simply shrugged.  
“I don’t see anything wrong with my body.”  
 _I don’t either._ Jason thought, but kept it in and instead questioned, “So how exactly did you go from scales to skin?”  
“When my tail is dry for a long amount of time, it turns into legs.” Tim shrugged as if it was something that everyone knew.  
“Well…okay.” Jason nodded. “I guess this makes you easier to take to the hospital.”  
“Great. Let’s get me some medical attention.” Tim smiled, walking with a slight wobble to the door, like he was heading outside, but Jason stopped him.  
“Uh uh, merboy, I can’t let you streak the neighborhood.” Jason stated as he steered Tim to his room. He then rummaged through his drawers and handed Tim some boxers, sweat pants, and a t-shirt. Yes, they were big on him, but Jason figured that oversized clothes were better than Tim walking around nude.  
“I do not understand why humans feel the need to wear clothing.” Tim huffed, but didn’t make any more remarks when Jason shot him a look. Jason had to help Tim put the clothing on, especially when maneuvering his injured arm into the sleeve and putting on the pant legs.  
Tim made a face when he felt the cloth separating his legs.  
“It feels weird.” He frowned.  
“It’s socially acceptable.” Jason huffed. “Besides, when you have legs you can’t keep them together all the time.” Jason then led Tim outside to his beaten up truck.  
Tim stumbled several times on the way to the truck, clearly not used to walking, but Jason made sure he didn’t fall.  
They made it to the car, and Jason sped off to the hospital. As Tim clutched onto the seat of the vehicle for dear life since they were going faster than he had ever gone before, Jason wondered,  
 _What the hell am I getting myself into._


	2. Chapter 2

Chpt.2   
“So, what exactly _happened_ to him?” the doctor questioned, examining Tim’s arm.  
“He was an idiot and was swimming during the storm yesterday night.” Jason informed, and Tim shot him a displeased look for being called an idiot.   
“Well, the arm is definitely fractured.” The doctor stated. “We’ll need to put it in a cast.” Jason swore that Tim’s pale face somehow managed to get paler.   
“Is that going to hurt?” the merman questioned in a low voice. The doctor just chuckled and said reassuringly,  
“No, it will be fine. The cast is to just make sure that the bone sets correctly and heals right. It’s hardly painful.” Tim relaxed slightly at the doctor’s words, but still looked extremely nervous.   
“So… will you just wrap a cast around my arm and that’s it?” Tim inquired slowly.   
“Well we will have to sedate you so we can set the bone again.” The doctor informed and Tim’s face looked panicked again.  
“S-sedate me!?” Jason rested a hand on Tim’s shoulder, and looked at the doctor.  
“Doc, can you set everything up and give us a moment?” Jason questioned, and the doctor nodded, hurrying out of the room.   
“You need to chill.” Jason stated, glaring at the boy.   
“Chill? Jason, this man wants to sedate me! What if I don’t wake up? What if this kills me? What if he’s really a scientist and while I’m sleeping he starts dissecting me?” There were tears in the corners of Tim’s eyes and Jason noticed that the boy was shaking.   
“Hey,” Jason spoke gently and grasped the boy’s hand. “It’s gonna be okay. This guy won’t do any experiments on you because he is a doctor. He is sworn to help you.” Jason said slowly.   
“But-”  
“Trust me, Timmy. I promise you’ll wake up in one piece and I’ll be waiting for you.” For several moments, Tim stared up at Jason, looking him directly in the eyes. He then slowly nodded, looking at the ground.  
“Okay… I trust you.” He whispered.   
“Great.” Jason smiled as he ruffled the boy’s hair. There was a knock at the door, and the doctor came in, informing that the room was ready.   
Tim hesitated when the doctor told him to follow him back to the room.   
“Jason?”  
“You’ll be fine.” Jason smiled at him, but Tim’s face was still fearful.   
“Jason, can you come with me?” he questioned.   
“Honestly, Timmy. You’re acting like you’re five.” He grumbled and Tim just stared at him. Jason let out a long sigh then looked at the doctor. “Doc, would it be okay if I stayed with him?” Jason asked and the doctor smiled at the man.  
“Yes, there’s nothing wrong with that.”   
They followed the doctor to the room and Tim laid down on the stiff cot and the doctor started to prepare his arm for the IV.   
When the doctor held up the needle, Tim’s eyes widened and started to gather tears in the corners of them.   
“Hey, it’s okay Timmy. Look at me.” Jason stated, and Tim looked over at the human. “Just look at me and relax. You’re going to be fine, alright? So calm down.” The IV was in Tim’s arm and it was just a matter of him falling asleep, which was fairly swift.   
“Mr. Todd, exactly what is your relationship to Mister… Drake, was it?”   
“Yes.” Jason nodded. He had given Tim the last name of Drake when given the form to fill out. Drake was just the only last name that popped into his head that seemed to make sense to him. “And we’re just friends.”   
“I see.” The doctor nodded. “You can head out to the waiting room if you like while we set Mr. Drake’s cast.”   
“Thanks, Doc.” With that, Jason dragged his feet to the waiting room, collapsed on one of the chairs, and fell asleep.   
~*~*~*~*~Later~*~*~*~*~  
“Mr. Todd? Mr. Todd?” Jason blinked his eyes open to see the doctor.   
“Oh, hey Doc. How’s Tim?” Jason inquired and the Doctor stated,  
“He is awake and wants to see you.” Jason followed the doctor back into the room where Tim was sitting up, the IV out of his arm. His eyes were wide and nervous and Jason was quickly by his side.   
“You feel okay?” Jason questioned. Tim looked down at his arm, which was bound in a cast and hanging from a sling.  
“I am… alright.” He informed slowly.   
“Okay… well, how does the cast feel?”   
“Restricting.” Tim grunted, reverting back to the attitude he had when Jason first met him. Jason preferred Tim like this rather than afraid and on edge.   
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*Back at Jason’s Home~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
“What is to happen to me now? I cannot allow my cast to get wet. I can’t return to the ocean.” Tim sighed, and Jason shrugged.  
“You could stay here. Unless, like, you’ll die if you can’t swim in the ocean after a certain amount of time. Then I wouldn’t know what to do.” Jason informed as he collapsed on the couch.  
“No… I’ll be alright in this form. I just… I’ve never been out of the water for this long.” Tim explained, worrying his lip in-between his teeth.   
“You’ll be fine. There isn’t much to worry about around here. I mean, if we were in my hometown then maybe you’d have to be more cautious, but things here are much safer.” Jason explained.   
“You’re old home town?” Tim questioned, seating himself on the other side of the couch.   
“Yeah. I used to live in this hell hole of a city called Gotham. It had crazies coming out the wazoo.”   
“So you came here because it was more peaceful?” Tim inquired, tilting his head to the side and Jason mentally cursed himself for using the word “cute” to describe the merman’s movement.   
“Not really. I mean, I lived on the Gotham streets a good chunk of my childhood. I can deal with all the shit the place could throw at me.” Jason informed, then sighed, running a hand through his thick hair. “I left because of my family.”  
“You’re family?” Tim inquired, managing to lean closer to Jason with interest. “Were they forcing you to do something you didn’t want to?”   
“No… well… I dunno. They were just making my life shitty and it was irritating and I just wanted to be a man and start my own life away from them.” Jason informed. “What about you, Timmy? Any reason why you were out swimming in the middle of a storm? Were you with others?” Jason’s questioned seemed to catch Tim off guard.  
“Oh… well-” there was a knock at the door, cutting Tim off. “Shouldn’t you answer it?” Tim inquired when Jason stayed stationary.  
“Don’t wanna.” Jason grunted.   
“Jay, I know you’re in there!” exclaimed a voice and Jason let out a heavy sigh.  
 _God, it’s Dick again._   
“That sounds like the human who was here earlier.” Tim stated.   
“that’s cuz it is.” Jason grumbled as he stood from the couch. “Timmy, you should stay here. This shouldn’t take long.”   
Jason stomped over to the door and opened it to reveal Dick standing with a basket.   
“I’m still busy.” Jason stated gruffly.  
“I got some goodies from Alfred.” Dick smirked, and Jason’s eyes widened.   
_Food. Lovely food that tastes like heaven!_ Jason lunged for the basket, but Dick swiftly held it out of reach.  
“Not so fast little brother. I’ll give you the goods only if you let me into your home and we can talk.”   
Jason gritted his teeth in frustration, but stepped to the side, letting Dick into his home. However, due to the promise of heavenly food, Jason forgot about Tim’s presence on the couch. When he remembered, he ran to Dick saying,  
“Dick, can’t we just talk in the kitchen. There’s no need to-” Unfortunately, it was too late. Dick was already in the living room eye to eye with Tim.  
“Oh, hello.” Dick said, taken back that Tim was still in the house. “Uh… it’s great to see you with clothes on.”  
“Thank you.” Tim smiled politely.  
“Soooo… I’m taking it you and Jay had a good time this morning.”   
Jason really hated his brother sometimes.


End file.
